editionpeters

Instrumentation: S.2Mez.Ct.2T.2Bar Soli—3-6 Adult Men—Children's Chorus—Adult Unison Chorus—Adult SATB Chorus—1(Picc).0.1.0—0.0.0.0—Perc—Org—Hp—Str(1.0.0.1.1)

Duration: 75 (mins)

Date of Comp: 1999

Details: Fantastic Church Opera in one act. Libretto: David Lan

Reviews
‘This was a truly glorious occasion: the reopening of one of Britain’smost consistently imaginative and daring theatres with a communityopera of heart-stopping beauty and depth of feeling. […] Tobias andthe Angel, with a beautiful and accessible score by Jonathan Dove,and a potent, witty and moving libretto by the Young Vic’s outstandingartistic director, David Lan, was the company’s first “walkabout” showand now it returns to reopen the building and bring the company home.[…] When everyone is singing, the sound is absolutely glorious. Dove’sscore combines exuberant ensemble numbers inspired by the Jewishklezmer tradition with more meditative, lyrical passages reflectingthe beauties of nature. […] the Young Vic has returned home intriumph.’
Charles Spencer, The Telegraph,13 October 2006

‘So was this a curious choice to reinaugurate the theatre? Absolutelynot. Community opera is a genre that can so easily patronise itsparticipants, but Dove and Fulljames’s treatment of the amateurs —children and adults, drawn from Lambeth — is so assured that they areas much the stars of this superb piece as anyone else. Dove, whomemorably turned the ordinary into the extraordinary in his hugelysuccessful comic opera Flight, goes one better inTobias: he makes the fantastical familiar. [...] Around thissimple story of redemption Dove’s score expertly surrounds Lan’s wittyand direct libretto: nods to klezmer spice up the freshly mintedmelodies; shivering discords take us into the story’s darkerterritory. [...] This is life-enhancing stuff, and by the time of thefinal climax, when the theatre resounds to the tenderest of Dove’shymns, it’s clear that the “New” Young Vic has got itself off to aterrific start.’
Neil Fisher,The Times, 13 October 2006

‘[...] a more all-embracing and deeply charming opera you could notwish for [...] This production is alive with the energy of massendeavour, its professional cast supplemented by a talented andsuperbly drilled amateur chorus of men, women and children fromLambeth and Southwark. [...] Jonathan Dove’s score is accessible inits theatricality, driving the action with changes of orchestralcolour a child should understand - the angel gets celesta and flutes,a whinge gets some fussy plucked strings. Yet it is far frompatronising. Dove’s melodic lines subtly trace the varied emotionalpaths of David Lan’s libretto. Klezmer music is all over the place,with the buzz of an accordion providing background for lamentation,its oom-pah announcing comic moments.’
Kieron Quirke, The Evening Standard, 12 October 2006

‘The music never patronises the participants and Dove's melodies areboth winningly immediate and dramatically astute. The score conjuressurging rivers, precipitous mountains and even a moving mysticism.
The most ravishing music in the whole score comes at the end of thestory, as counter-tenor James Laing's stranger reveals himself to bethe angel Raphael and the whole cast sings a hymn-like melody withrapt intensity. Inclusive in the best sense of the word, Tobias andthe Angel is a community opera that is also a compelling work ofmusic-theatre.’
Tom Service, The Guardian, 10 September 2004

‘One reason Jonathan Dove’s opera Flight was such a triumph atGlyndebourne is that he understands the marriage of theatre and music.He knows how to rouse passions and raise smiles. Tunes flow inabundance, and for him, creating a mood, capturing a feeling for aninstant, are second nature...His new one-act church opera Tobiasand the Angel surpasses all his achievements to date...’
Fiona Maddocks, The Observer, 11 July 1999

‘I can’t wait to hear it again...In my opinion, Dove has created awork of exceptional merit and individuality. The scoring for smallorchestrais ingenious and ear-catching, the writing for chorus,including children, thrilling. Yes, I could mention it in the samebreath as Noye’s Fludde.’
Michael Kennedy, The Sunday Telegraph, 11 July 1999

‘The première of Jonathan Dove’s new opera was one of those occasionsthat made you glad to be alive. It’s a “community” opera in the verybest sense of the word...the sense of communal striving, communaluplift was palpable... In its sheer humanity it is indeed a worthysuccessor to The Magic Flute.’
Rodney Milnes, The Times, 9 July 1999

Contents:

EP7535

£27.50

Tobias and the Angel programme note

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